Simu Liu deletes old tweets about Mark Wahlberg after both cast in same film

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star, Simu Liu, has come out in defense of his decision to delete old tweets that criticized Mark Wahlberg for trying to get his past crimes pardoned and wiped from his criminal record. The decision was made after Liu signed on to star alongside Wahlberg in Arthur the King.

Back in 1988, Wahlberg was convicted of assaulting two Vietnamese men, one of whom was beaten unconscious. According to police reports, Wahlberg was also yelling racial slurs at the men. In 2014, Wahlberg, who has grown up and changed his life considerably since that time, attempted to get his past hate crimes pardoned. The actor was charged with attempted murder, but pleaded guilty to felony assault, claiming he was high on PCP at the time and that the attacks weren't race-related. This prompted Liu to tweet, at the time, about Wahlberg's actions and his desire to have his crimes pardoned:

"Let me get this straight, Mark Wahlberg beat a helpless Vietnamese man with a stick until he passed out when he was 16, and is attempting to get the courts to grant him an official pardon on the basis that he's 'turned his life around'?"

Fast forward to 2020, Liu is now going to star with Mark Wahlberg in Arthur the King, which made him delete his past tweets that criticized his upcoming co-star. This led to some blowback against Liu on social media for defending his decision to delete said tweets. An example of that blowback was actually posted by Liu and he used it as a way to defend his decision as a means to start a conversation. The post can be viewed below his quote about making his decision:

"I deleted a couple of tweets I made regarding the past actions of one of my costars as a gesture of professionalism and to open the door to progressive conversations and (hopefully) positive change. Obviously it'd be pretty weird to go to work with that tweet still up. I meant what I said in the moment; I was very angry hearing about what happened. But that doesn't mean I don't think there's room to grow and work together to find an opportunity to educate and do some good, which I'm excited to do in addition to shooting the movie. Progressive discussion will lead to dialogue, and dialogue will lead to action."

Liu also believes that the Arthur the King role is important for him to take on. The actor says he is "playing a character that is undoubtedly a positive representation of an Asian man. I signed on to Arthur the King because I absolutely adored the script, which tells the beautiful story of how a dog changed the lives of four adventure racers in the forests of Ecuador."

The film is expected to be animated so Liu and Wahlberg wouldn't be physically on screen together but when it comes time to promoting the film, their paths will likely cross, and having his name associated with Wahlberg after coming out so hard against his plea to be pardoned for his crimes, likely made Liu supporters feel as if he was selling out a bit to be cast in a new film. If Liu believes that positive dialogue can be had between the two performers then he is more than welcome to change his stance on Wahlberg and bring about some positivity. To Wahlberg's credit, while he was never offered a pardon for his crimes, he did say that "I am deeply sorry for the actions that I took on the night of April 8, 1988, as well as for any lasting damage that I may have caused the victims." Wahlberg even met with one of the men he assaulted, Johnny Trinh, and Trinh expressed he forgave the actor and even thought he should've been pardoned by saying "He was young and reckless but I forgive him now. Everyone deserves another chance. I would like to see him get a pardon. He should not have the crime hanging over him any longer."

Do YOU think Simu Liu was right to delete his old tweets against Mark Wahlberg?